A Different Perspective Order of the Phoenix
by Phoenix.albus
Summary: At the beginning of a new year Harry struggles to cope up with Cedric's death, Voldemort's resurrection, a different Snape and a jealous Ron. At the same time a new girl comes to Hogwarts. A new DADA Professor and a helpful Dumbledore.Harry/OC pairing.
1. Chapter 1 The Letter

**DISCLAIMER: _I don't own HP... It belongs to J._**

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:_ This story is based in the fifth year and is my take on how things could have been different for Harry. I am not a native speaker of English so do excuse my language. I would be grateful if my readers point out my mistake._**

**_Also I do not have a beta reader as I am relatively new to this site and I don't know anyone. I would be grateful if someone volunteers for the task._**

**_I have said enough and its time I let you all read the story peacefully. So here goes the first chapter._**

* * *

"The boy is nothing like his father… You are letting your old prejudices colour your opinion Severus…" Albus sighed wearily at the younger man.

"He is a walking replica of his obnoxious father…" Snarled the younger man with evident distaste.

"Severus… it was a long time back. James is long dead and gone and Harry is not responsible for the actions of his father. You don't have to take out your frustrations on the helpless child who is not even in a position to retort or answer properly to his professor.

"On the contrary, let me assure you that all the detentions and punishments he has received in my class were well deserved by him. If I cannot worship the very ground he walks upon unlike others then do forgive me for being sacrilegious Albus." Severus Snape snapped in irritation.

"That is not how he is treated Severus. You have no idea…." Albus trailed off. He glanced at the parchment for the umpteenth time since it had arrived.

"Excuse me then for not being blind to the evident hero worship prevalent at Hogwarts regarding your Golden Boy Albus. And before you say something else let me tell you that I absolutely have no wish to waste the entire morning discussing your golden boy. SO if you have nothing else of interest I would take my leave."

Albus sighed audibly and pinched the bridge of his nose to stop himself from verbally lashing out at his young charge. Age was certainly taking his toll on him otherwise he would not be having this urge to chastise the younger man like an errant child. He was losing his touch.

"No, I guess you are very busy." He said instead. "DO tell me about the meeting which you attended last night. What is Voldemort planning?"

Severus winced at the name but kept quiet. Then he started speaking. "There is nothing much to report." He pursued his lips in deep thought. "He wants to keep a low profile as of now. He is relying on Fudge's apathy over accepting his reappearance and is trying to regain his strength. Almost all of his entire inner circle has returned and Lucius has contacts deep in the ministry. Don't be surprised if Fudge takes some drastic steps. He probably would be under Imperius."

"I don't think anything that Fudge does would ever surprise me."

"Also the Dark Lord has ordered some strength regaining potions. Even after the blood sacrifice he is very weak though he wouldn't want his inner circle to know that."

"And I trust you took care of that?" Dumbledore peered at his younger colleague over the top of his half moon spectacles.

"Oh yes, I have made some modifications in the brewing process. The potions which I would be feeding him now would have a different effect. He wouldn't lose strength but he would take a very long time to regain his strength. And nobody would know that there is something different in the potions."

"Why Severus, that is but excellent my boy." Dumbledore looked at him with twinkling eyes which were shining with happiness and what was that…pride?

Severus was flustered. True… he had always wanted his mentor to acknowledge his accomplishments… be proud of them… be proud of him. But he never felt that he deserved it. He always tried to do his best to satisfy this person who had stood beside him with unwavering faith and unshaken confidence. Albus had trusted him when he himself had no confidence left, had comforted him when he was shaken, had walked into his life when everyone else had walked out, had believed in him when he himself had lost faith and had been the sole anchor in his life when he had no roots left.

He tried to waive off the matter as unimportant. He was not used to praises. "Oh…! It is nothing. With the dark mark becoming strong over the course of last year I had thought of doing this. I had an intuition that if the Dark Lord returned to power then most certainly he would need these."

"Does he suspect? I don't want you to land up in trouble Severus."

"He won't suspect anything. With all his aptitude he doesn't know the P of healing Potions. And anyways, it is not the Dark Lord but Fudge who would be rearing trouble this time."

"Which makes it all the more imperative that Harry should be kept safe."

"And I suppose he is safe under those blood wards." Snape said distastefully.

"But is he…? I very much doubt it my boy." There was something worrying the old man, Severus could see it in his face. He was again staring at that parchment of paper in his hand.

Severus sat there silently, not knowing what to do, not knowing if he should say something. Albus was distracted; he was staring at a point on the far end of the wall. When after a long moment he finally looked up and stared at Severus critically, as if seeing him in new light and the younger man very much wanted to run out of the room.

"I have an errand for you my boy." Albus began and the blasted twinkle which Severus so much hated was back in his blue eyes. Severus Snape was more than sure that he was not going to like the errand.

* * *

A clock in the distance chimed loudly. It was almost 11:00 pm when Severus Snape stalked out of his private quarters in the dungeons and stalked out with a furious scowl fixed permanently on his face. It sure would have sent the students scurrying for cover.

Sometimes he detested Albus much more than he hated the Dark Lord. He wondered for the umpteenth time whether Albus was truly a Gryffindor… he had so much of Slytherin tendencies hidden in him. He had dearly wanted to hex the Old Relic into the next century. What in the name of Merlin did the man desire to achieve by sending him on this god damn mission – to check on the Potter brat of all bloody people in the world.

He didn't have the slightest doubt that the boy was well cared for… he was fawned over by his relatives. After all he was the esteemed savior of the wizarding world, the spawn of that show off 'James Potter'. No doubt his relatives would adore him for being so famous and important, would always be at his beck and call, would fulfill all his wishes and then he was safe under those blood wards. So what was the point in checking up on the idiot Gryffindor?

He had reached the apparition point by then. With a huff he spun firmly in his place and with a faint pop disapparated from Hogwarts.

Albus Dumbledore drew away from the window after having watched his Potions Master walk out of the gates of the school. Slowly we walked back and sat down in his chair with an audible sigh. He was too tired to do any further work. Besides with Voldemort back it was more important than ever that Harry be kept safe. He had wanted to go and check on the child himself, but with the visions which the child was being subjected to; he was apprehensive about Voldemort's presence in his mind. Harry as the Boy – Who –Lived was already a target; he didn't want to compound the problem by giving it out to Voldemort that the relationship between him and Harry was more than that of a student and a teacher. No…someone else would have to do it. Normally he would have asked Remus Lupin to check out Harry but with Full Moon only a couple of days to go the man was already sick. So he was left with no other option but to send Severus Snape.

For the umpteenth time he wondered at the wisdom of his decision. He fervently hoped that Severus would refrain from hexing the muggles if the situation at the Dursley's was as bad as the letter proclaimed. Oh well… at least the problem of a Defense Against the dark Arts professor was solved for the coming year.

He picked up the parchment and went through it with a frown.

_Dear Albus_

_Hope this letter finds you in the best of moods since the resurrection of the evil wizard. I know you would probably be busy with the upcoming school year as well as with the various loose ends which you said you had to tie._

_And regarding the task which you assigned me when we met last month let me tell you what I have found out. And please take care to keep your fiery temper under control even if this letter serves to incense you._

_That said I want you to remove that boy immediately from that house. What the hell were you thinking when you placed the child in their care? They are the worst sort of guardians even for their own child although they have inflicted an altogether different sort of damage on that blasted bully of a boy._

_But they absolutely hate their nephew. He is being subjected to physical and mental abuse in that bloody place which is supposed to be his home. Do something about this as soon as you can otherwise I swear by Merlin, I will not hesitate to take the matters into my own hand. As such my patience is hanging by a thin thread._

_I hope not to hear from you but see you take some action._

_Regards_

_A.D._

_PS: It will be my pleasure to take up the position of DADA professor. I just hope your Potions Master doesn't hex me with this news. Tell him that I seek his blessings._

* * *

Hermione was bent over a piece of parchment, her brows furrowed contemplatively as she chewed on her quill in an obvious attempt to concentrate on her task. She was in the process of composing a proper letter to her best friend Harry. It had been almost two weeks now that they were back from Hogwarts and Harry had yet to write a letter to her. Forget a letter, he had yet to pen down a single word to her or to Ron for that matter. She knew something was wrong with her friend but the more she tried to ask him the more distant he became.

`As she scribbled a few more lines of nonsense, she debated whether to broach the topic of Cedric's death and Dark Lord's resurrection. But all the letters which she had written till date didn't get a reply. What in the name of Merlin was Harry trying to hide? Or was he wallowing in guilt? It wasn't easy for a boy to see his fellow schoolmate and friend killed in front of his eyes, see the Dark Lord come back to life and then escape with the dead body of his friend after duelling the Dark Lord.

She didn't know all the details of that fateful night and she had no doubt that the only person who knew everything was Albus Dumbledore – Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizadry. And she had noticed Harry's reluctance whenever she had tried to broach the subject of Cedric and He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. He avoided the topic like plague and consequently drifted away from her and maybe even Ron.

Not quite knowing what to do, she threw away her quill in a huff and put her head in her hands. For the first time Hermione Jean Granger found herself at a loss of ideas which even her extensive reading and huge piles of books couldn't provide.


	2. Chapter 2 Where is Harry?

**DISCLAIMER: HP belongs to JKR..**

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**CHAPTER – 2:**

Severus Snape – Potions Master of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was in a towering rage. He had arrived at Number 4, privet Drive half an hour back and had encountered an ill mannered Dudley and the fat oaf of his father. He hadn't changed into appropriate muggle clothes for Dumbledore hadn't asked him to spy on Potter but just check on him.

XXXX

_Severus Snape knocked on the door of 4 Privet Drive scowling at the perfect geometrical pattern of the houses and the perfectly clean and maintained lawns. If his guess was correct then the interior of the house would be spic and span. He had no intention of staying here more than what was required of him._

_The door clicked open bringing him out of his thoughts. He sneered when a boy of the size of a small killer whale opened the door and insolently said… "Yes?"_

_No doubt as to the source of Potter's manners. Summoning up his best scowl which would have sent students scurrying away from him he turned the full blast on the fat oaf of the boy and said in his ice cold voice. "I am here to check on Mr. Potter."_

_He watched as the boy's eyes widened in understanding and fear. He backed away a few steps and then turned and ran from the room with his hands covering his bottom. Snape could hear him screaming down the kitchen. "Mum… one of the freaks is here to check on him."_

"_Freak?" Severus Snape was intrigued. "Weren't they supposed to treat him like a celebrity?_

_He shelved the small bit of information for later use and carefully stepped inside closing the door smoothly behind him._

_Almost immediately a thundering sound could be heard and Severus Snape mentally flinched at the loud noise. How could someone make such a loud noise while walking?_

_However the moment Vernon Dursley thundered down the stairs and stood scowling in front of Snape, the Potions Master immediately realized what could have caused the loud noise._

"_What do you want? We don't want freaks in our house. Get lost."_

"_Mr. Dursley." Snape put on his fiercest tone as he stretched himself to his full height. "M here to check on Mr. Potter."_

"_There is no one here by that name. Now get lost." Snape could make out the glimpses of fear behind the façade of anger which Vernon Dursley was trying to put on his face._

"_Mr. Dursley… I guess I need to refresh your memory. Your nephew… Mr. Harry Potter who is a student of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry…"_

"_Don't utter that name here you freak…!"_

_Snape ignored the interruption and continued smoothly. "… resides here at Number 4, Privet Drive and since I have doubled checked the number of your house before knocking, I cannot be at the wrong address. Now where is your nephew?_

_Before Vernon Dursley could articulate an answer a shrill voice disturbed their conversation. "Who is it Vernon?"_

_Severus whirled around to face the bony, horse faced Petunia Dursley who bore no resemblance to the beautiful, gorgeous and kind hearted Lily Evans. "You…!"_

"_Hello Tuney…." Snape smirked at her shocked expression. "I see that the years have taught you nothing. Still the same… aren't you?"_

"_Neither have you changed Severus." She spat her eyes blazing with fire._

"_Oh… you will never know…!"_

_Vernon Dursley not used to being ignored jumped in to the conversation. "You know him?"_

"_But of course… he was the one who initiated Lily into that freak world… he took away my sister."_

"_How very unfortunate Tuney…!" Snape butted in smoothly but his voice had an undercurrent of danger which unknowingly chilled the Dursleys. "But let me remind you… Lily always loved you… till her dying day… it was you and your jealousy for her gift which pushed her away."_

"_Jealousy… hah… I would never be jealous of a freak." Petunia harrumphed quite forgetting the fact that the man standing in front of her knew her as a child, knew some secrets which she had buried deep in her heart and also knew her nature and her deep jealousy for everything magic._

"_No…! Indeed…" The voice was silky, smooth but ice cold. "You seem to have forgotten some things. Well… let me refresh your memory. I seem to be doing that quite a lot today. You wrote a letter to Albus Dumbledore…"_

"_Noooooooooo….."_

"… _asking him to allow you to study magic and when he refused you were heartbroken. You badly wanted to be a witch…. You wanted to be gifted… you wanted to be like Lily… you were jealous of her… in short Tuney you wanted to be a freak just like your sister and me."_

_Looking at her ashen face and the surprise on the face of her husband, Severus felt a morsel of satisfaction. It was just a small revenge for all the insults which she had heaped on him and Lily when they were children._

"_I see that you have kept the secret from your husband. Well well… I will leave you two to it. I can see that you have a lot of explaining to do." He turned and started to move towards the staircase._

"_Where are you going?"She had regained some of her composure but her voice was trembling._

"_How very hospitable Tuney…!" He sneered and stalked upstairs thereby missing the look of consternation which had crossed their faces. Maybe then he would have had an inkling of the shock which he was going to get upstairs._

XXXX

Severus Snape had checked all the three bedrooms upstairs. The first one had been very large, in fact the largest of all the rooms. As he opened it and peered inside he could make out the King sized bed in the room. It could not be Potter's room; the master bedroom belonged to the Dursley couple.

He did not even enter the second room. It was locked from inside and a casual flick of his wand opened the door. There cowering against the wall was the beefy Dudley Dursley. Severus threw him a withering glare and stalked out closing the door behind him with a snap.

The third room was too sparsely furnished to be the room of a 14 year old teenager boy. So where was Harry Potter?

As he looked around him, his eyes were caught up by a room which had heavy padlocks on them. The door was locked from outside and Severus thought it to be the store room. But what attracted his attention was the cat flap at the bottom of the room. The Dursley's were not of the type to keep cat as a pet and Potter's familiar was a snowy owl. To say that he was intrigued by the room would be an understatement. His curiosity piqued he advanced towards the room and whispered a soft '_alohomora'._

It took him some minutes to adjust his eyes to the darkness which engulfed the room. For some strange, inexplicable reason he felt the hairs on his neck rising. What in the name of Merlin was going on here?

A soft _Lumous _bathed the room in faint white light. As he took a stock of his surroundings, he could feel his eyes widen in surprise.

There was a window which was closed and barred. The room had a pile of dusty and broken toys – more new than old. A small dusty book case was lined on one end of the wall and a small, rickety bed occupied the room which was by far the smallest room in the Dursley household. The room was dusty and smelled of sweat, grim and blood.

On the small table sat a bird cage which was too small for the large snowy owl which it housed. Snape knew Hedwig as Potter's familiar. Cautiously he approached the bird who seemed to be anxious for some reason.

"Hello…" he cooed softly.

The bird fluttered its wings desperately and fixed its amber coloured eyes on the Professor. Snape was stuck by the intensity in her eyes and the desperate urging in them. Slowly he opened the cage and took out the bird.

"What's wrong with you? And where is your master?"

In response Hedwig simply flew out of the room and down the staircase with Snape in tow.

"Bloody bird… who freed it?" roared an incensed Vernon Dursley.

"Ssshh… Vernon… be quiet."

Snape could see the owl fluttering worriedly in front of a small cupboard which was located under the staircase. His consternation increasing, he turned towards the Dursley who were alternating between trembling in fear and sending glares at him. He however was past caring. He could feel that something untoward had happened here, he could feel the magical pull… it seemed as if someone was in danger, some magical being and he was loathe to admit that he – Severus Snape – Potions Master of Hogwarts was scared.

"What is in there? Where is Harry?" he thundered in rage.

When he got no reply from the still trembling Dursley's he simply stalked forward and opened the door of the cupboard with a flick of his wand. The snowy own screeched and settled down on his outstretched arms.

The door opened to reveal a ghastly sight. There bundled inside the cupboard on a small bed was a very bloody and wounded Harry Potter.

XXXX

"Are you sure Severus is not going to mind my presence in Hogwarts? I know he craves for this position and having me there would awaken his temper."

"It is also true that besides Lily you were the only one who had been able to befriend him Alex. I am sure you both will get along well."

"I somehow don't share your optimism Albus."

"Don't worry, everything will turn out well. Now care to send Ariana through? I could do with having her around." The old man's eyes twinkled at the prospect of seeing his favourite grand child and the young man who had stuck his head in the floo had no intention of making the old man wait. He pulled back and minutes later the floo flared and out stepped a young girl dressed in perfect muggle attire of jeans and a t - shirt. Her long hair hung loose around her shoulders and her eyes resembled that of the Headmaster.

"Grandpa...!" She flung her arms around the Headmaster who was twinkling merrily at her.

A silvery white doe glided through the open window cutting through the joy of family reunion. Albus sprang apart and stared at the doe with an expression of worry.

"Albus...you are needed here urgently." After having delivered the message it faded away leaving the people in the room - one immensely worried and another extremely curious.

"Shall I go and wait for you at the cottage Grandpa?" the young girl queried softly.

"Why thank you child. Twinkle and Penny will be there to help you of course. And I will be back soon." he looked worried and Ariana had an haunch that this holiday was going to be very different from what she had previously imagined.

XXXX

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**AUTHOR NOTE: Thanks to my lone reviewer SlytherinLover143... :)**


	3. Chapter 3 The Rescue

**A/N: HP belongs to JKR. Sorry for the delay.**

**XXXXXX**

**CHAPTER - 3:**

**A RESCUE:**

Privet Drive was cloaked in a fine sheet of darkness. It was past midnight when a tall, thin man appeared in a corner of the Privet Drive. It was quite difficult to judge his age from the silver of his long hair and beard for he appeared so old that one would wonder how such an old man could be alive and in perfect shape. His nose was long and crooked and his half moon spectacles were perched precariously on his nose. His bright, blue eyes were devoid of their usual twinkle.

It was a moonless night. The sky appeared to be dark black colored velvet studded with glittering pieces of diamond. Albus Dumbledore remembered the last time he had been here almost 14 years back. He never expected to be summoned here in such an urgent manner.

Forcing down the uneasiness he was feeling he took out a silver cigarette lighter and flicked it open. He clicked it once and all the lights from the street light went off plunging the whole street in to darkness.

Gathering his deep blue robes around him, he walked in the direction of 4, Privet Drive. Stepping over the low garden walls, he walked towards the front door which opened noiselessly the moment he placed his foot on the stairs.

"Severus…!" He greeted the dour looking Potions Master who had opened the door to let the Headmaster in.

"What is going on Severus? I asked you to check on Harry, but it seems that something is very wrong here."

Without a word Snape turned and stalked towards the living room confident that the headmaster was following him. He stopped in front of a transfigured bed hiding the person resting there completely from view.

"You better see this for yourself." He moved away from sight exposing the old man to a scene which would definitely leave anyone confused… confused and scared.

On the bed lay a very pale and thin Harry Potter.

Dumbledore did a double take on seeing the pale figure lying on the bed. "Is he sleeping?" The question was asked very softly, but the Potions master only shook his head in negation.

Taking a few steps forward he reached up to the bed and pulled out the covers revealing a ghastly sight.

The boy was pale – almost as pale as Severus himself and was completely skins and bones. He was so very thin that every single bone in his body could be counted with ease. Just three weeks into the holidays and he had lost every pound that he had gained at Hogwarts.

One would have thought that only malnutrition was sufficient – but no… Harry Potter never did things in half. His thin frame was covered with scars – red, angry lines ran from his chest to his torso covering the previous blackened wounds. Quite a lot of the old wounds had opened up and were bleeding freely soaking the sheet in a deep crimson colour. There were angry welt marks on his skin which seemed to be made from being hit by a belt's buckle. His right wrist was swollen and seemed to be broken.

"Oh Merlin… What in the name of Merlin has happened to him?"

**XXXXXX**

There was darkness all around – but not the oppressing, hurtful darkness which used to scare him as a child. Instead he felt safe, comforted. The darkness enclosed him in its wings as if cocooning him against all his agonies. He felt liberated as he found himself floating in the vast expanse of the darkness.

He didn't realize how long he had been there. He couldn't see anything, couldn't feel anything except for the all encompassing warmth which somehow showed no signs of dissipating. He flexed his fingers in the darkness and felt the kinks working out. That was relaxing. He got up and stretched his muscles. Long disuse had rendered them useless; it took him a while to get used to their mechanisms. Finally when he could stand firmly without any support, he looked around.

Darkness….! Night…! Where was he?

And who in the name of blessed Merlin had rescued him from those obnoxious and extremely unreasonable relatives' of his? Try as he might, he could not remember the rescue operation. Who had taken him out of there? Ron? Fred and George? Mr. Weasley?

After thinking for a while he discarded the chances of the Weasleys coming to his rescue because try as he might, the security and comfort which enveloped him now was not their doing. Happiness – he could attach with Weasleys, a carefree attitude was their trademark, but security, comfort, and safety was not something which he could attach with the Weasleys.

Then who – Remus? No.. he would be too busy keeping Sirius company. Harry was not stupid – he knew the last of the two Mauraders were devastated and broken and considering the amount of time Sirius had spent in Azkaban and then the next one year on run, he knew that his Godfather was in dire need of proper food and rest. And he was not that selfish to wish his Godfather or his erstwhile DADA Professor to come to his rescue and get into trouble for him. Sirius was the last living relative he had and Harry was loathe to lose him.

So again he returned to the same question – who had rescued him? Dumbledore? Nah! The headmaster was too busy to indulge in such unimportant tasks. And why did he need rescuing? What had happened to him? With a pang, Harry suddenly realized that he couldn't remember one single day of his summer vacations? His last conscious thought was about the Leaving feast and his depression over having to go back to the loving care of his relatives.

His panic rising, he looked around in the darkness. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he remember anything? He felt a sudden surge of dread running through him. His last conscious thought before slipping into oblivion was about the identity of his rescuer.

**xxxxxx**

Number 12, Grimmauld Place was the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix as well as the temporary establishment of the Weasleys. Sitting in the bedroom assigned to the twins, Ron and Hermione bent their head over a parchment in an effort to construct a letter.

"But Hermione… why is he not replying to our letters?"

"Maybe he is not getting them Ron." Hermione pointed out in a worried voice.

"But why wouldn't he get them? Dumbledore said that as long as we don't mention what's going on in here; he would see to it that Harry receives our letters. But he hasn't replied to a single one yet. And not just the ones we are writing now, but also the letters which I wrote from burrow haven't been answered."

"Remember our second year Ron when Dobby was blocking his mail. Maybe someone else is doing it this time."

"Yes… but Dobby is employed in Hogwarts. And I don't know about another house elf who would take it upon himself to save Harry from whatever danger is following him this time."

"Oh well… I suppose we could ask Professor Dumbledore about Harry the next time he is here." Hermione said a bit uncertainly.

"Good." Ron pushed away the unused parchment and the quill. "In that case can we go and have our lunch? I am hungry."

"Ron! You are always hungry." But she got up and followed him out of the room and into the kitchen where Mrs. Weasley was busy cooking lunch for all the people who currently resided there.

**xxxxxx**

The room was big and warm. And though all the lights were off, a faint light from a small fireplace at one end of the room threw a pearly sheen in to the room giving it a warm glow. A big four poster bed was situated in the centre of the room. On the left side of the bed and just beneath the large windows was a mahogany writing table of sizeable proportion. A straight backed chair was placed in front of it. On the bed stood a table lamp which somehow blended in with the surroundings without any problem. Near the table was a bookcase which held a few books. A chest of drawers was situated at the other end of the room just opposite to the bed. A couch was sitting some distance away from the drawers. At the far end of the room on the right side was a closed door, probably the washroom.

Next to the bed on its right side was a plush armchair which was occupied by a very old man with long silver hair which was held by a red ribbon. He wore bright red robes which were studded with shining stars. His long silver beard was tucked inside his waist band and his half moon spectacles perched precariously on his nose. Albus Dumbledore had been sitting in this same position for the last hour and half.

And before that – before that he had trying to comfort the badly distraught boy who was lying on the bed slipping in and out of consciousness for the last 24 hours and had been unconscious for more than 48 hours before that. Never in his wildest dreams had the headmaster ever thought that his well meaning plans to keep the boy safe could have back fired so badly. And he had himself to blame for that. What had he been thinking when he had placed the child in care of those obnoxious Dursleys? They were the worst sort of guardians for any child and particularly for a wizard child. With a mind block as huge as a rock and an irrational fear towards everything magic, the Dursleys were unfit to raise a wizard child, and that too the one who had a horror in his past. Merlin…! He should have listened to Minerva all those years ago.

Bone weary with exhaustion and guilt, he let his head fall into his palms. He was so lost in his own thoughts that neither did he hear the creaking of the door nor the soft footsteps of a person walking into the room. He came to his senses when a hand held his shoulders in a firm grip.

"All is not lost Albus. He will be fine."

The blue eyes were devoid of their usual twinkling when they met the onyx eyes of his colleague. "I have failed him badly Severus; just like I had failed you all those years ago. I had promised to myself that I wouldn't let another child suffer like you did, but yet again I committed the same mistake."

"Don't blame yourself Albus. You couldn't have known."

"And yet, I should have known Severus, I should have at the very least guessed. At the end of his first year he had hinted at his reluctance to return to his relatives' home, and thinking that the wards were more important for their safety and that probably he didn't want to go there because of some silly, school boy fight with his cousin I persuaded him to go back. He didn't make the same request again. And yet, year after year he came back from that place more disturbed than happy. And year after year I kept on ignoring the signs… I was only too happy to ignore them… and kept sending him back to that infernal hell."

Severus Snape bit the sharp retort which was at the tip of his tongue. "_Yes indeed… and year after year you let him face the dangers alone, you let him compete in that blasted tournament, you let him face the Dark Lord alone and knowing his apparent hatred for secrecy you kept him away from his friends and let him suffer alone… and all that after the child was forced to witness the death of his friend. Bravo indeed; Albus."_

But seeing the deep regret on the visage of his mentor, he kept silent about his feelings. "Go and have something Albus. You haven't eaten anything since last evening."

"I am not very hungry Severus."

"May be you are not… may be this is your way of punishing yourself, but Ariana certainly is at no fault. She is waiting for you to eat something. Go and explain your absence to her. She deserves something better than this pure neglect Albus."

Slowly, the headmaster got up from his seat and finally turned to face his younger colleague. His face was marred with deep lines of tiredness and for once Severus was grateful that he had held back his tongue. A painful smile flitted across his face. "I suppose you will be here Severus."

"I will be here. Now go."

With a nod, the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry walked out of the room.

**XXXXXX**

Severus Snape was not a very patient man. In fact, he had no patient, especially with those of slower mental processes. And neither did he have even one ounce of compassion. He had never considered him to be of the emotional types. So what was the reason that he felt an overwhelming sense of empathy with the blasted Golden Boy?

His heart was not in the usual tirades against the son of his arch nemesis and he knew that it was because he had seen his own childhood replay in front of his eyes the day he had gone to check on Harry Potter. He settled down on the chair and prepared for a long vigil. If Ariana had listened to him then by now Albus would be sinking into a dreamless sleep. The idea of drugging his food had been hers and he was in concurrence with it. The old man needed some rest.

He had always thought that harry had had a spoilt and pampered childhood. And consequently he hadn't been prepared to see blatant abuse and mistreatment at the hands of the Dursleys. The scene played like a reel in front of his eyes and he let himself sink into the events of that evening even though they were extremely ugly to be remembered. Perhaps he owed them to the boy. After four years of enmity which was based on nothing but false opinion he perhaps had to atone for them.

With a sigh, he waved his wand over the prone form of the boy. Thankfully the temperature was under control and the injuries were healing nicely. The broken bones had been healed by skele-grow and the rest of the bruises were fading. But the child was still painfully thin and he needed adequate nutrients to regain his strength. And maybe a full course of nutrient potions. He had already started brewing them in his potions Lab at his manor. But considering the condition of the boy and Dumbledore's lack of rest, he had hurried to release the man from sitting besides the sick boy.

He spelled a pain reliever and a healing draft into the child's system. Then as an afterthought he spelled a vial of nutrient potion into his system. The slight sound of the opening of the door alerted him to the presence of someone else.

"He passed out. I have put him to bed."

"Thank you Ariana." He turned and smiled at his god daughter who stood in the doorway.

"I should be thank you for responding so soon Uncle Sev." A small smile graced her perfect features and automatically he could feel his own facial muscles relaxing.

"Don't mention it child."

She smiled slightly but didn't go away. Instead she hesitated near the doorway. "Err… umm… need any help? Shall I sit with him while you take a short nap?"

"No… thank you Ariana. Perhaps you should go and rest. I am fine."

"Grandad would be out for the next 12 hours or more. In the meanwhile if you need anything just call me. I will ask Twinkle to respond to your call."

She turned around to leave but then stopped once again. "And don't worry about me. I am not feeling left out. I know grandpa loves him very much." She pointed in the general direction of the bed. "I am just worried that he may not make a full recovery considering the state you brought him in. Grandpa would be devastated… and even Harry doesn't deserve it." Then she turned and left the room softly closing the door behind her.

**XXXXXX**

With soft soundless steps, Ariana walked down the corridor and stopped in front of a door. Quietly opening the door, she peeped inside. The screens were drawn thereby obstructing the sunlight from streaming inside. The only light came from a lamp which was placed on the table with its wick lowered. On the bed covered in a red colored spread lay her grandpa. The dreamless sleep potion had taken its toll. He was sleeping peacefully. With a satisfied smirk which could have rivaled Snape's, she made her way far down towards the library.

She pulled open a big tome on healing potions and pored over it. Potions had always been her favorite subject. And she was an instinctive brewer, much like her god father but try as she might she was unable to concentrate on the process of brewing the Draught of Living Death.

Her mind went back to the incidents which had happened 3 days back. She had just flooed into the manor and Penny had put her things in her room when the floo in the living room flared green and out stepped Albus Dumbledore carrying an unconscious and bloodied Harry Potter.

She had been shocked beyond belief when she saw the scene in front of her. Her grandfather was trembling with barely controlled rage and his magic was swirling around him in a silver colored mist. And behind her grandfather was Severus Snape whose usually stern visage was contorted in uncontrollable fury. She wasn't stupid – she had immediately understood that something had happened with the boy, but she didn't know the identity of the injured guest.

However three days later, between sitting besides his bed side, helping her grandfather in administering potions and working along with her god father in brewing the requisite potions, she had pieced together the bare facts of the story.

The boy was Harry Potter, the Boy – Who – Lived, and her grandpa's favorite student. He had been abused by Dursleys and something very dangerous and drastic had happened to him. And it was Snape who had found him in that state. And he had performed the _Retribution_ spell.

Ariana knew that Retribution spell was a very powerful spell and a wizard who felt righteous anger could only cast the spell. And knowing the tumultuous history between Harry Potter and Severus Snape she was not sure how the Potions Master had managed to cast the spell.

With a sigh, she closed the book and let her head fall into her arms. What had happened with the boy who was put in the care of his blood relatives?

**XXXXXX**

A slight noise from the bed shook Severus Snape out of his reverie. The boy was tossing and turning in his bed, trashing around as beads of perspiration lingered on his forehead. Getting up quickly he walked up to the bed and peered at the sleeping figure. This was the first movement he had seen from the boy in three days.

The boy was caught up in some sort of nightmare. And after seeing firsthand the condition of his home life, Severus didn't have a doubt about the content of the dreams.

He bent down and shook the desperately twitching child. "Potter… wake up."

"No…no…! Don't… don't kill her. Please don't kill her."

Severus sprung back in shock. "Kill her?" What was the child dreaming of?

"Potter… you are dreaming. Get up."

"Gerroffme." He desperately attacked the unsuspecting Potions Master. It was only the lightning fast reaction of years of training at being a spy which saved Severus from being hit.

He watched for a few minutes but somehow seeing the brat struggle with his nightmares didn't allow him to stand back quietly. Very cautiously he approached the badly trashing child and gently shook him keeping his voice as soft as possible for him. "Potter… potter… H...Harry… wake up… you are safe here… nobody is killing you. Wake up."

As suddenly as the thrashing had started, it stopped and limp with exhaustion Harry fell almost lifeless on the bed. Badly scared Severus Snape shook the unconscious teenager. "Harry… Harry… wake up."

He really hadn't expected any response, so he jumped up in surprise when a pair of emerald green eyes blinked open and stared deep into the onyx ones. "Where am I?"

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the delay... was caught up in end term exams which were preponed a bit. So i couldn't post the third part in time. Hope this part doesn't need any refreshing of memory for my readers.

Harry Telcontar Holmes: Thank you for reviewing. Alex's entry will surely prove to be a turning point for the story. But who is he and what will he do remains to be seen.

SlytherinLover143: thank you... you are my first reviewer. Hope the length was better this time.

alexm789: Done!

**Please read and review...! **


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